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Gunnar Rugheimer: Gunnar Rugheimer, who died on February 21st, on the eve of his 80th birthday, will be remembered as an innovative controller of programmes in the early days of Telefís Éireann who resisted political and church pressures in establishing current affairs as part of the station's output.

He was also responsible for head-hunting Gay Byrne, then in British TV, to host the Late Late Show, which was to cause him and his director-general, Kevin McCourt, many headaches with the powers-that-be. He also faced some resentment that a non-national should hold such an influential position in the national television service and he left the post after less than four years.